Page 35 of The Tycoon
“What? What now, Princess? I…I’m sorry…I uh, I think I dozed off there for a minute,” he says, lifting his hand to swipe across his face.
“Dozed off?” I ask, my expression peppered with concern.
Shrugging his shoulders, he gives me a devilish smirk that disarms me. He doesn’t seem bothered in the slightest by what just happened.
“Well, we haven’t been getting a lot of sleep these pastfew nights, have we?”
Nodding in agreement, the frown refuses to budge from my face. He isn’t wrong, we’ve been indulging in each other to the point of exhaustion. I could probably fall asleep right now, if given the opportunity. However, I am rattled to my core.
“I suppose you’re right, Sir, we are both tired…but you weren’t yourself, it was like you werepossessed.It really scared me,” I admit.
Lifting his hand, he reaches to cup the side of my face. Swiping the pad of his thumb along my lower lip, he hums in an effort to soothe me.
“Please don’t worry, my sweet Dolly. This will happen from time to time, it’s been happening since I was little. When I don’t get proper rest, I can have what Mama callswaking dreams.Now I know they can be a little scary, but I assure you, I always snap out of them quickly. I’m not possessed, I’m just bone-tired, is all. I’m sorry for scaring you. I hate that I’ve worried you.”
Kissing his thumb in reverence, my body softens from his words. I’m still uneasy, but his explanation does make sense to me.
“Waking dreams,” I repeat softly.
Seemingly pleased by my response, he leans in to press a barely there kiss upon my mouth.
“Waking dreams,” he whispers, letting his lips brush against mine as he speaks. “Which I wouldn’t have had if I wasadhering to the rules I set forth for us. I have not been doing my job as your caretaker, have I?”
“Of course you ha–”
“Shh, no. No, I haven’t, Princess,” he continues, his whisper taking on a hard edge. “I’ve been selfish with you. You haven’t slept more than three hours over the past three nights, and neither have I. That’s unacceptable. We will be going to bed after we eat dinner and we will besleeping.”
Keeping my gaze on his, I watch as he pulls back. My knee-jerk reaction is to laugh and roll my eyes, but I know he’s deadly serious. I’m disappointed to say the least, but he does have a point. We are both exhausted, having some quality rest would do us some good. I would like us to enjoy our last full day together before he leaves me for his business trip Friday afternoon.
“Yes, Sir.”
“That’s my good girl,” he purrs.
Opening my mouth to thank him, I’m interrupted by the melodic alarm of his elevator.
“Ah, speaking of dinner,” he says, gently moving my legs from his lap. “And not a moment too soon. I can think of nothing better than a belly full of double cheeseburgers and milkshakes to have us sleeping like babies.”
Offering me a wink, he quickly stands from the couch. Holding out his hand, he waits patiently for me to sit upproperly.
“That does actually sound like heaven,” I reply, my stomach rumbling right on cue.
Taking his hand, I carefully stand from the sofa. Waiting for him to step before me, I follow a couple of paces behind. My eyes drift over his muscular back, languidly taking my fill of his physique as he walks. Perhaps we should have waited until after his assistant had dropped off dinner before getting into our pajamas.
“Would you like me to grab you a shirt really quick so you can be decent?” I ask.
Glancing over his shoulder, he arches a dark brow.
“Why would I want to do that?”
My eyes fall to the wooden floor as we near the elevator. A twinge of jealousy pricks my brain as I think of his beautiful assistant. She’s the type of woman that has inherited sex appeal. With long dark hair, soulful eyes, and legs for days, she’s a lawsuit waiting to happen.
“She’s awfully flirty, Sir.”
Halting his steps, he turns on his heels to face me. A humored look passes over his masculine features, but I’m not sure what’s so funny.
“Who? Savannah?Savannah is flirty?”
Nodding my head, I fight the urge to place my hands on my hips. I’ve never been the type of girl that has felt the need tostake her claim, but I did not care for the way she and Sutton spoke to each other when she brought over my bathing suit. It didn’t really bother me at the time, but the more I think about it, the more annoyed I become.